China expanding its nuclear force far faster than predicted, Pentagon warns

Report says Beijing’s operations could challenge the US

China is expanding its nuclear force at a rate that could see it overtake US global power by the middle of the century, the Pentagon has warned.

In a report released on Wednesday, defence officials said Beijing was building up military strength much faster than the US had predicted a year ago, and was set to control as many as 700 nuclear warheads within six years, and 1,000 by 2030.

Last year the Pentagon said the number of Chinese nuclear weapons was in the “low 200s” and was likely to double by the end of this decade, reported the Associated Press.

In comparison, the United States has 3,750 nuclear weapons and no plans to develop more.

The AP reported that US officials believe China is developing its military, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), in order to position itself as a challenger to the United States across all fronts of warfare; air, land, sea, space and cyberspace. President Xi Jinping has said China plans to become a global military power by 2049.

“The PLA’s evolving capabilities and concepts continue to strengthen (China’s) ability to ‘fight and win wars’ against a ‘strong enemy’ — a likely euphemism for the United States," the report said, adding that China’s operations could pose a threat to the US in the future.

General Mark Milley made remarks ahead of the report’s release to the Aspen Security Forum about Chinese military advances, saying: “We are witnessing one of the largest shifts in global and geostrategic power that the world has witnessed.”